SIMBA
Chain, a cloud-based Blockchain-as-a-service (BaaS) platform formed from
a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) grant in 2017
originally developed by ITAMCO and the University of Notre Dame, has
been awarded a government contract that will see the U.S. Air Force
leverage its platform as it explores how Blockchain technology can
improve its logistics and supply chain capabilities.

The Air Force has a highly complex logistics and supply chain network
which moves millions of parts around the world and needs to function
dependably and without interruption. This complexity and need for
ongoing, documentable precision is an ideal use case for Blockchain.

The Air Force will be using SIMBA Chain to securely scale its additive
manufacturing supply chain, following a call put out earlier this year
by the Department of Defense through the Small Business Innovation
Research (SBIR) program, seeking technologies with commercial
applications that can help the service branch streamline its supply
chain and logistics and stay ahead of the technological curve.

"We're
moving what was once a broad, strategic concept to reality," said
Brenchley Boden, Senior Engineer at Air Force Research Laboratory.
"Digital Thread is game-changing, and we're leading the charge."

Blockchain technology can securely connect the Industrial Internet of
Things, providing a permanent digital ledger and consensus network that
democratizes how business and manufacturing are done. This has
implications for global industries spanning government to manufacturing
to healthcare.

"We're excited to be the first implementers of Blockchain across the
entire Digital Thread, not only securing it but applying a non-repudiable
and immutable ledger," said SIMBA Chain CEO and Founder Joel Neidig.